Image display apparatus and operation method thereof

ABSTRACT

A method of operating the video display device according to the embodiment of the present invention comprises acquiring a video of a video display device associated with a user; recognizing a gesture of the user in the acquired video; calculating a control amount with regard to the gesture based on the recognized gesture; and performing the control operation corresponding to the recognized gesture and the calculated control amount.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is the National Phase of PCT International ApplicationNo. PCT/KR2014/006080, filed on Jul. 8, 2014, which claims priorityunder 35 U.S.C. 119(a) to Patent Application No. 10-2014-0067920, filedin the Republic of Korea on Jun. 3, 2014, all of which are herebyexpressly incorporated by reference into the present application.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a video display device and an operatingmethod thereof, and, more particularly, to a video display device and anoperating method thereof which recognize a gesture of a user andprovides the control operation corresponding to the recognized gesture.

BACKGROUND

Recently, digital TV services using wired or wireless communicationnetworks have been generalized. The digital TV services can providevarious services which have not been provided in the existing analogbroadcasting services.

For example, an Internet protocol television (IPTV) service or a mart TVservice, which is one type of the digital TV services, is abidirectional service which allows a user to actively select the kind,viewing time, or the like of a program to be watched. The IPTV serviceor the smart TV service can provide various additional services, forexample, Internet search, home shopping, on-line games, and the like,based on the bidirectional service capability.

Meanwhile, the recent smart TV may recognize a gesture of a user andperform a control operation corresponding to the recognized gesture.However, the gesture of the user which the smart TV may recognize islimited and there is a problem that it is difficult to input a controlamount, such as the volume of sound, with only the gesture. Accordingly,the smart TV recognizes a combination of a plurality of gestures of theuser and provides the various control operations. However, the method ofrecognizing the combination of the plurality of gestures of the user hasthe difficulty which the user has to memorize the plurality of eachgestures and there is a limitation that the combination of the pluralityof gestures are not intuitive to the user.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

It is an aim of the present invention to recognize a gesture of a userand provides a control operation and a control amount corresponding tothe recognized gesture.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a control operationthat the user pursues and the control amount with regard to the controloperation with only one gesture.

Technical Solution

The method of operating the video display device according to theembodiment of the present invention is acquiring the video with regardto the user of the video display device; recognizing the gesture of theuser in the acquired video; calculating the control amount with regardto the gesture based on the recognized gesture; and performing thecontrol operation in response to the recognized gesture and thecalculated gesture.

The video display device according to the embodiment of the presentinvention includes the video acquisition unit acquiring the videoassociated with the user of the video display device; and the controlunit which recognizes the gesture of the user in the acquired videoassociated with the user, calculates the control amount with regard tothe gesture based on the recognized gesture, and performs the recognizedgesture and the control operation in response to the calculated controlamount.

Advantageous Effects

According to the various embodiments of the present invention, thepresent invention may recognize the control operation which the controlamount is required with only one gesture, and, thus, perform the desiredcontrol operation with only one gesture by the user.

Further, the present invention provides the intuitive input method withregard to the control amount, and, thus, may provide the intuitivegesture to the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a videodisplay device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a remote control device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an actual configuration of aremote control device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a video displaydevice according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary diagram for illustrating the video acquisition ofa video acquisition unit according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 6A to 6D show the gesture in the left-right directions accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A to 7C show the left-right gesture according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 8A to 8C show a finger gesture of the user according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 9A to 9C are the up-down gesture according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIGS. 10A to 10B show the exemplary diagrams with regard to theforward-backward gesture recognition according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 11 is an exemplary diagram with regard to the ratio comparison ofthe object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an exemplary diagram with regard to the length comparison ofthe object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an exemplary diagram with regard to the area comparison ofthe object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 14A to 14D are the gesture in the left and right directions of theuser according to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments relating to the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Thesuffixes “module” and “unit” for components used in the descriptionbelow are assigned or mixed in consideration of easiness in writing thespecification and do not have distinctive meanings or roles bythemselves.

A screen display control method and a video display device using thesame according to an embodiment will be described in detail withreference to the accompanying drawings.

A video display device according to embodiments is an intelligent videodisplay device that, for example, a computer supporting function isadded to a broadcast receiving function. The video display device may beequipped with a convenient to use interface such as a written type inputdevice, touch screen, or spatial remote control unit due to addition ofthe internet function while sticking by the broadcast receivingfunction. In addition, the video display device may also access theinternet and a computer by a support of wired or wireless communication,and perform functions of email, web browsing, banking or game. For thesevarious functions, a standardized general purpose OS may be used.

Therefore, a video display device described here may perform varioususer-friendly functions, because various applications may be freelyadded to or removed from a kernel of the general purpose OS. The videodisplay device may be, as a detailed example, a network TV, a hybridbroadcast broadband (HBB) TV, a smart TV, an LED TV, or an OLED TV, andmay also be applied to a smart phone in some cases.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a videodisplay device according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 1, a video display device 100 may include a broadcastreceiving unit 130, an external device interface unit 135, a storageunit 140, a user input interface unit 150, an video acquisition unit160, a control unit 170, a display unit 180, an audio output unit 185,and a power supply unit 190. The broadcast receiving unit 130 mayinclude a tuner 131, a demodulation unit 132, and a network interfaceunit 133.

The external interface unit 135 may receive an application or anapplication list in an adjacent external device, and deliver it to thecontrol unit 170 or the storage unit 140.

The external device interface unit 135 may include a terminal to connectto an external device, so that it may be connected to a connector of theexternal device.

The external device interface unit 135 may supply a power received fromthe power supply unit 190 to a connected external device as drivingpower.

Additionally, the external device interface unit 135 may deliver anoperation signal that an external device transmits to the control unit170.

On the other hand, the external device interface unit 135 may deliver avoice signal that the control unit 170 transmits to an external device.

Moreover, the external device interface unit 135 may include a sensordetecting a connection of an external device, so that it may recognizethe connection.

The network interface unit 133 may provide an interface for connectingthe video display device to a wired/wireless network including theinternet. The network interface unit 133 may transmit or receive data toor from another user or another electronic device through an accessednetwork or another network linked to the accessed network.

In addition, the network interface unit 133 may transmit some of contentdata stored in the video display device 100 to a selected user or aselected electronic device among other users or other electronic devicespre-registered for the video display device 100.

The network interface unit 122 may access a certain web page through anaccessed network or another network linked to the accessed network. Inother words, the network interface unit 122 may access a certain webpage through the network and transmit or receive data to or from acorresponding server.

In addition, the network interface unit 133 may receive content or dataprovided by a content provider or a network operator. In other words,the network interface unit 133 may receive content such as movie,advertisement, game, VOD, broadcast signal and information relatedthereto provided from the content provider or the network operatorthrough the network.

In addition, the network interface unit 133 may receive firmware updateinformation or update files provided by the network operator, andtransmit data to the internet, content provider, or the networkoperator.

The network interface unit 133 may select and receive desiredapplications among applications opened in public through the network.

The storage unit 140 may store videos, voices, or data signals storedand signal-processed by programs for signal-processing and controllingin the control unit 170.

In addition, the storage unit 140 may perform a function of temporarilystoring videos, voices, or data signals input from the externalinterface unit 135 or the network interface unit 133, and may storeinformation on videos through a channel memory function.

The storage unit 140 may store an application or an application listinput from the external interface unit 135 or the network interface unit133.

The video display device 100 may play, to the user, content files (avideo file, a still video file, a music file, a document file, anapplication file, etc.) stored in the storage unit 140.

The user input interface unit 150 may deliver a signal input by the userto the control unit 170, or deliver a signal from the control unit 170to the user. For example, the user input interface unit 150 may receiveand process a control signal such as power on/off, channel selection, orscreen setting from the remote control unit 200, or transmits a controlsignal from the control unit 170 to the remote control unit 200according to various communication schemes such as Bluetooth, ultrawideband (WB), ZigBee, radio frequency (RF) communication, and infrared(IR) communication.

In addition, the user input interface unit 150 may deliver a controlsignal input through a power key, a channel key, a volume key, or alocal key (not shown) for a setting value, etc.

The video acquisition unit 160 may acquire a video.

The video acquisition unit 160 may include at least one camera and thus,may acquire an video through an included camera.

Then, the video acquisition unit 160 may deliver the acquired video tothe control unit 170.

An video signal video-processed by the control unit 170 may be input tothe display unit 180 and displayed as an video corresponding to thecorresponding video signal. In addition, the video signalvideo-processed by the control unit 170 may be input to an externaloutput unit through the external device interface unit 135.

A voice signal processed by the control unit 170 may be audio-output tothe audio output unit 185. In addition, the voice signal processed bythe control unit 170 may also be input to the external output devicethrough the external device interface unit 135.

In addition, the control unit 170 may control overall operation in thevideo display device 100.

The control unit 170 receives a detection signal for a connection of anexternal device from the external device interface unit 135 and may thencontrol the power supply unit 190 so that driving power is delivered toan external device connected to the external device interface unit 135.

Furthermore, the control unit 170 may recognize a user's gestureincluded in a video on the basis of the video acquired through the videoacquisition unit 160. Then, the control unit 170 may perform a controloperation corresponding to the recognized user's gesture.

The control unit 170 may also control the video display device 100 bymeans of user commands input through the user input interface unit 150or internal programs, and access a network and allow the user todownload a desired application or application list to the video displaydevice 100.

The control unit 170 may allow user-selected channel information to beoutput together with the processed video or voice signal through thedisplay unit 180 or the audio output unit 185.

In addition, the control unit 170 may allow an video signal or a voicesignal input through the external device interface unit 135 from anexternal device, for example, a camera or a camcorder to be output tothe display unit 180 or the audio output unit 185 according to anexternal device video playback command received through the user inputinterface unit 150.

On the other hand, the control unit 170 may control the display unit 180so as to display an video, and control so that a broadcast video inputthrough the tuner 131, an external input video input through theexternal interface unit 135, an video input through the networkinterface unit, or an video stored in the storage unit 140 is displayedon the display unit 180. In this case, the video displayed on thedisplay unit 180 may be a still video or a video, or a 2-dimensional(2D) or 3-dimensional (3D) video.

The control unit 170 may also control so that content stored in thevideo display device 100, received content, or externally input contentis played, and the content may have various types including a broadcastvideo, an externally input image, an audio file, a still video, anaccessed web screen, and a document file.

The display unit 180 may convert an video signal, a data signal, or anOSD signal processed by the control unit 170, or an video signal, or adata signal received by the external device interface unit 135 into anRGB signal, and generate a driving signal.

On the other hand, the video display device 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 ismerely an embodiment, and some of the illustrated elements may beintegrated, added or omitted according to specification of the actuallyimplemented video display device 100.

In other words, in some cases, two or more elements may be integratedinto one element, or one element may be divided into two or moreelements. In addition, a function performed by each block is forexplaining an embodiment, and detailed operations or devices thereof arenot limit the scope of the present invention.

According to another embodiment, the video display device 100 mayreceive an video through the network interface unit 133 or the externaldevice interface 135 and play the video without including the tuner 131and the demodulation unit 132, which is different from as shown in FIG.1.

For example, the video display device 100 may be implemented as dividedinto an video processing device such as a set top box for receiving abroadcast signal or contents according to various network service, and acontent playing device playing contents input from the video processingdevice.

In this case, an video displaying method according to an embodiment tobe described below may be executed by not only the video display device100 as described above with reference to FIG. 1, but also the videoprocessing device such as the divided set top box or content playingdevice including the display unit 180 and audio output unit 185.

Next, a remote control unit according to an embodiment is described withreference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a remote control unit and FIG. 3illustrates an exemplary configuration of a remote control unitaccording to an embodiment.

First, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the remote control unit 200 may includea wireless communication unit 225, a user input unit 235, a sensor unit240, an output unit 250, a power supply unit 20, a storage unit 270, anda control unit 280.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the wireless communication unit 225 transmitsand receives a signal with any one of the above-described video displaydevices.

The remoter control unit 200 may include an RF module 221 that iscapable of transmitting and receiving a signal with the video displaydevice 100 according to RF communication specification, and include anIR module 223 that is capable of transmitting and receiving a signalwith the video display device 100 according to IR communicationspecification.

In addition, the remote control unit 200 may transmit a signal havinginformation on movement of the remote control unit 200 therein to thevideo display device 100 through the RF module 221.

Furthermore, the remote control unit 200 may receive a signaltransmitted by the video display device 100 through the RF module 221,and transmit a command such as power on/off, channel change, or volumechange to the video display device 100 through the IR module 223 in somecases.

The user input unit 235 may include a keypad, buttons, a touch pad, or atouch screen, etc. The user may manipulate the user input unit 235 andinput commands related to the video display device 100 to the remotecontrol unit 235. When the user input unit 235 includes a hard keybutton, the user may input commands related to the video display device100 to the remote control unit 200 through a push operation to the hardkey button. Regarding this, description is made with reference to FIG.3.

Furthermore, the interworking device 99 shown in FIG. 2 indicates anexternal device interworking with the video display device of theembodiment and includes, but not limited to, both of a user's healthinformation sensing device and a user's body information sensing device.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the remote control unit 200 may include aplurality of buttons. The plurality of buttons may include a powerbutton 291, a channel button 293, an emotion mode button 295 and a LIVEbutton 297.

The power button 291 may be a button for turning on/off power of thevideo display device 100.

The channel button 293 may be a button for receiving a broadcast signalof a specific broadcast channel.

The emotion mode button 295 may be a button for entering an emotion modeto be described later.

The LIVE button 297 may be a button for displaying a broadcast programin real time.

Description is made with reference to FIG. 2 again.

When the user input unit 235 includes a touch screen, the user may inputcommands related to the video display device 100 to the remote controlunit 200 by touching soft keys on the touch screen. In addition, theuser input unit 235 may include various kinds of input units operable bythe user including a scroll key or a jog key, etc., and the embodimentdoes not limit the scope of the present invention.

The sensor unit 240 may include a gyro sensor 241 or an accelerationsensor 243, and the gyro sensor 241 may sense information on movement ofthe remote control unit 200.

For example, the gyro sensor 241 may sense information on the movementof the remote control unit 200 on the basis of x, y, z axes, and theacceleration sensor 243 may sense information on a movement speed of theremote control unit 200. In addition, the remote control unit 200 mayfurther include a distance measuring sensor and sense a distance to thedisplay unit 180 of the video display device 100.

The output unit 250 may output videos or voice signals corresponding tomanipulation of the user input unit 235 or corresponding to a signaltransmitted by the video display device 100. Through the output unit250, the user may recognize whether the user input unit 235 ismanipulated or whether the video display device 100 is controlled.

For example, the output unit 250 may include an LED module 251 turnedon, a vibration module 253 generating vibration, a sound output module255 outputting a sound, or a display module 257 outputting an video,when the user input unit 235 is manipulated or signals are transmittedand received with the video display device 100 through the wirelesscommunication unit 225.

In addition, the power supply unit 260 supplies power to the remotecontrol unit 200. When the remote control unit 200 is not moved for apredetermined time, the power supply unit 260 stops supplying power tothe remote control unit 200 and may reduce power waste. The power supplyunit 260 may resume supplying power when a certain key prepared in theremote control unit 200 is manipulated.

The storage unit 270 may store various kinds of programs necessary forcontrolling or operating the remote control unit 200 or applicationdata. When the remote control unit 200 wirelessly transmits and receivessignals with the video display device 100 through the RF module 221, theremote control unit 200 and the video display device 100 transmit andreceive signals through a certain frequency band.

The control unit 280 of the remote control unit 200 may store, in thestorage unit 270, and refer to information on a frequency band throughwhich signals are wirelessly transmitted and received with the videodisplay device 100 paired with the remote control unit 200.

The control unit 280 controls overall items related to controls of theremote control unit 200. The control unit 280 may transmit, to the videodisplay device 100 through the wireless communication unit 225, signalscorresponding to manipulation of a certain key of the user input unit235 or corresponding to the movement of the remote control unit 200,which is sensed by the sensor unit 240.

Hereinafter, a method of operating the video display device 100 will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating the videodisplay device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, the video acquisition unit 160 of the video displaydevice 100 acquires a video with regard to the gesture of the user(S101).

The video acquisition unit 160 may acquire the video associated with theuser via the camera included in the video acquisition unit 160.

Referring to FIG. 5, the video acquisition with regard to the gestureoperation of the user of the video acquisition unit 160 according to anembodiment of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary diagram for illustrating the video acquisition ofthe video acquisition unit 160 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the video acquisition unit 160 is provided in thefront side of the video display device 100 and acquires the video.Accordingly, the video acquisition unit 160 may acquire the videoassociated with the user using the video display device 100.

According to an embodiment, the video acquisition unit 160 may acquirethe video associated with the user via the camera provided in the frontside of the video display device 100. The video acquisition unit 160transmits the acquired video associated with the user to the controlunit 170. The video with regard to the gesture operation of the user maybe included in the acquired video associated with the user.

Meanwhile, the camera is not included in the video display device 100and may be also provided separately.

The video display device 100 recognizes the gesture of the user based onthe acquired video with regard to the gesture of the user (S103).

The control unit 170 of the video display unit 100 may recognize thegesture of the user based on the video with regard to the gesture of theuser, which is acquired by the video acquisition unit 160.

As an embodiment, the control unit 170 may detect a gesture object areafrom the acquired video associated with the user. The control unit 170may recognize one or more of a shape and a movement of a gesture objectin the detected gesture object area. Further, if one or more of theshape and the movement of the recognized gesture object are determinedas matching one or more of a shape and a movement of a previously storedgesture object, the control unit 170 may recognize one or more of theshape and the movement of the recognized gesture object as the gestureof the user.

The gesture object may include a part of the body of the user, such ashand, finger, foot, head, and face. Further, the gesture object area maybe an area in which the gesture object including a part of the body ofthe user is located in the acquired video with regard to the gesture ofthe user.

The video display device 100 recognizes a position of the gesture object(S105).

The control unit 170 of the video display device 100 may recognize aposition of the gesture object in the acquired video.

As an embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize a position of ahand which is the gesture object in the acquired video.

As another embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize a position ofa finger which is the gesture object in the acquired video.

As another embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize a position ofa head which is the gesture object in the acquired video.

The gesture object may include the part of the body of the user, such asthe hand, the finger, the foot, the head, and the face. One or moregesture objects may be set, and, thus, a plurality of objects may bealso set as the gesture object. Further, the gesture object may beselected in various ways according to the selection of the user or adesigner.

Meanwhile, step S105 may be included in S109 step to be described below.

The video display device 100 recognizes a position of a reference object(S107).

The control unit 170 of the video display device 100 may recognize theposition of the reference object in the acquired video.

As an embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize the position of ahead which is the reference object in the acquired video.

As another embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize the positionof a hand which is the reference object in the acquired video. Herein,the hand which is the reference object may be identical to or differentfrom the hand which is the gesture object.

As another embodiment, the control unit 170 may recognize the positionof the finger which is the reference object in the acquired video. Inthis case, the finer which is the reference object may be identical toor different from the finger which is the gesture object.

In this case, the reference object may include the part of the body ofthe user such as the hand, the finger, the foot, the head, and the face.One or more reference objects may be set and, thus, a plurality ofobjects may be set as reference objects. Further, the reference objectmay be selected in various ways according to the selection of the useror the designer.

Meanwhile, step S107 may be included in step S109 to be described below.

The video display device 100 calculates a distance between therecognized gesture object and the reference object (S109).

The control unit 170 of the video display device 100 may calculate thedistance between the gesture object and the reference object based onthe position of the recognized gesture object and the position of thereference object.

Details will be described below with reference to FIGS. 6A, 7A, 8A and9A.

FIG. 6A shows the gesture of the user in the left and right directionsaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6A, the video display device 100 may recognize theposition of the head of the user which is the reference object and thehand which is the gesture object in the acquired video. Further, thevideo display device 100 may calculate a distance between a center ofthe reference object and a center of the gesture object. As anembodiment, the video display device 100 may calculate distance d1 abaseline L1 corresponding to the center of the head which is thereference object and a baseline L2 corresponding to the center of thehand which is the gesture object.

FIG. 7A shows a left-right gesture of the user according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7A, the video display device 100 may recognize aposition of the left hand of the user which is the reference object anda position of the right hand which is the gesture object in the acquiredvideo. Further, the video display device 100 may calculate a distancebetween a center of the reference object and a center of the gestureobject. As an embodiment, the video display device 100 may calculate adistance d1 between the baseline L1 corresponding to the center of theleft hand which is the reference object and the baseline L2corresponding to the center of the right hand which is the gestureobject. Meanwhile, in FIG. 7A, the video display device 100 mayrecognize the right hand as the reference object and recognize the lefthand as the gesture object in the acquired video.

FIG. 8A is an exemplary diagram showing a finger gesture of the useraccording to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8A, the video display device 100 may recognize aposition of a thumb of the user which is the reference object and aposition of an index finger which is the gesture object in the acquiredvideo. Further, the video display device 100 may calculate a distancebetween the center of the reference object and the center of the gestureobject. As an embodiment, the video display device 100 may calculate adistance d1 between the baseline L1 corresponding to the center of thethumb which is the reference object and baseline L2 corresponding to thecenter of the index finger. Meanwhile, in FIG. 8A, the video displaydevice 100 may recognize the thumb as the reference object and recognizethe index finger as the gesture object in the acquired video.

FIG. 9A is an exemplary diagram showing the up-down gesture of the useraccording to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9a , the video display device 100 may recognize aposition of the head of the user which is the reference object and aposition of the hand which is the gesture object. Further, the videodisplay device 100 may calculate a distance between the center of thereference object and the center of the gesture object. As an embodiment,the video display device 100 may calculate a distance d1 between thebaseline L1 corresponding to the center of the head which is thereference object and baseline L2 corresponding to the center of the handwhich is the gesture object.

Meanwhile, the video display device 100 may also calculate the distancebetween the reference object and the gesture object based on one or moreof the area, the size, the length of each of the reference object andthe gesture object, and the ratio between the reference object and thegesture object.

Details will be described below with reference to FIGS. 10A to 13.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are the exemplary diagrams showing theforward-backward gesture of the user according to another embodiment ofthe present invention.

Referring to FIG. 10A, the video display device 100 may recognize theposition of the head of the user which is the reference object and thehand which is the gesture object in the acquired video.

Further, referring to FIG. 10B, the video display device 100 maycalculate the distance between the center of the reference object andthe center of the gesture object. As an embodiment, the video displaydevice 100 may calculate a distance d between the baseline L1corresponding to the center of the head which is the reference objectand the baseline L2 corresponding to the center of the hand which is thegesture object.

According to an embodiment, the video display device 100 may calculatethe distance between the reference object and the gesture object basedon the ratio between the reference object and the gesture object.Details will be described below with reference to FIG. 11.

In FIG. 11, (a) and (b) are exemplary diagrams for describing ratiocomparison of the object according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

In FIG. 11, (a) is the case in which the head which is the referenceobject of the user and the hand which is the gesture object are locatedat the same baseline L1 as showed in FIG. 10A and, in FIG. 11, (a) isthe case in which the hand of the user is located at the baseline L2which is different from the baseline L1 as showed in FIG. 10 b.

Referring to (a) of FIG. 11, the video display device 100 may calculateone or more of a size and an area of the head of the user which is thereference object and calculate one or more of a size and an area of thehand which is the gesture object in the acquired video. Further, thevideo display device 100 may calculate a ratio between the referenceobject and the gesture object based on one or more of the size and thearea of the calculated reference object and one or more of the size andthe area of the gesture object.

Referring to (b) of FIG. 11, the video display device 100 may calculateone or more of the size and the area of the head of the user which isthe reference object and calculate one or more of the size and the areaof the hand which is the gesture object in the acquired video. Further,the video display device 100 may calculate the ratio between thereference object and the gesture object based on one or more of the sizeand the area of the calculated reference object and one or more of thesize and the area of the gesture object.

Further, the video display device 100 may calculate the distance betweenthe reference object and the gesture object by comparing the ratiocalculated in (a) of FIG. 11 and the ratio calculated in (b) of FIG. 11.Specifically, even if the position of the hand which is the gestureobject is changed, the position of the head which is the referenceobject is identical. Accordingly, one or more of the size and the areaof the head which is the reference object is identical even if theposition of the hand which is the gesture object is changed. Thus, thevideo display device 100 may calculate the distance between thereference object and the gesture object according to theforward-backward movements of the gesture object based on the ratiobetween the reference object and the gesture object. Accordingly, thevideo display device 100 may calculate the distance between thereference object and the gesture object based on the change of the ratiobetween the reference object and the gesture object in accordance withthe movement of the gesture object.

According to another embodiment, the video display device 100 maycalculate the distance between the reference object and the gestureobject based on one or more of the area, the size, and the length of thegesture object. It will be described below with reference to FIGS. 12and 13.

First, details will be described below with regard to the fact that thevideo display device 100 calculates the distance between the referenceobject and the gesture object, based on the length of the gestureobject.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are exemplary diagrams describing length comparison ofthe object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 12, (a) is the case in which the head which is the referenceobject of the user and the hand which is the gesture object are locatedat the same baseline L1 as showed in FIG. 10A and, in FIG. 12, (b) isthe case in which the hand of the user is located at the differentbaseline L2 which is different from the baseline L1 as showed in FIG.10B.

Referring to (a) of FIG. 12, the video display device 100 may calculatethe length of the gesture object in the acquired video. For example, thevideo display device 100 may calculate one or more of the length and thewidth of the gesture object. Accordingly, the video display device 100may calculate w1 which is the length with regard to the width of thehand which is the gesture object.

Referring to (b) of FIG. 12, the video display device 100 may calculatethe length of the gesture object in the acquired video. For example, thevideo display device 100 may calculate one or more of the height and thewidth of the gesture object. Accordingly, the video display device 100may calculate w2 which is the length with regard to the width of thehand which is the gesture object.

Further, the video display device 100 may calculate the distance betweenthe reference object and the gesture object by comparing the lengthcalculated in (a) of FIG. 12 and the length calculated in (b) of FIG.12. Specifically, even if the position of the hand which is the gestureobject is changed, the actual size of the hand which is the gestureobject is identical. However, the size of the gesture object is changedin the video, which is acquired by the video display device 100.Therefore, the video display device 100 may calculate the distancebetween the reference object and the gesture object according to theforward-backward movements of the gesture object based on the sizechange of the gesture object.

Further, the video display device 100 may calculate the distance betweenthe reference object and the gesture object based on the area of thegesture object.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are exemplary diagrams for describing area comparisonof the object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 13, (a) is the case in which the head which is the referenceobject of the user and the hand which is the gesture object are locatedat the same baseline L1 as showed in FIG. 10A and, in FIG. 13, (b) isthe case in which the hand of the user is located at the baseline L2which is different from the baseline L1 as showed in FIG. 10B.

Referring to (a) of FIG. 13, the video display device 100 may calculatethe area of the gesture object in the acquired video. For example, thevideo display device 100 may calculate a1 shown in black which is thearea of the gesture object as showed in (a) of FIG. 13. Referring to (b)of FIG. 13, the video display device 100 may calculate the area of thegesture object in the acquired video. For example, the video displaydevice 100 may calculate a2 showed in black which is the area of thegesture object as showed in (b) of FIG. 13.

Further, the video display device 100 may calculate the distance betweenthe reference object and the gesture object by comparing the areacalculated in (a) of FIG. 13 and the area calculated in (b) of FIG. 13.Specifically, even if the position of the hand which is the gestureobject is changed, the actual area of the hand which is the gestureobject is identical. However, the area of the gesture object is changedin the video, which is acquired by the video display device 100.Therefore, the video display device 100 may calculate the distancebetween the reference object and the gesture object according to theforward-backward movements of the gesture object based on the areachange of the gesture object.

Meanwhile, according to another embodiment, the video acquisition device160 of the video display device 100 may include the camera which maymeasure the distance, and, thus, it may calculate the distance betweenthe center of the reference object and the center of the gesture objectvia the included camera. For example, the video acquisition device 160may measure a distance between the reference object and the gestureobject via the TOF camera (Time Of Flight Camera, not shown). In thiscase, the TOF camera means a camera of calculating the distance byemitting light and measuring time of flight of the emitted light and isthe known technology, and, thus, the detailed description thereof willbe omitted.

The video display device 100 performs the recognized gesture andoperation the control operation corresponding to the calculated distance(S111).

The video display device 100 may perform the control operationcorresponding to one or more of the shape and the movement of therecognized gesture and the calculated distance between the referenceobject and the gesture object.

Specifically, the video display device 100 may perform the controloperation corresponding to the recognized gesture and the calculateddistance by recognizing the recognized gesture as the control operationand recognizing the calculated distance as the control amount or theperforming amount. Further, the video display device 100 may recognizethe control amount or the performing amount as the positive number orthe negative number according to the calculated distance.

Further, the control operation which the video display device 100 mayperform may include the various control operations that the videodisplay device 100 may perform. For example, the video display device100 may perform one or more of control operations including the channelchange operation, the volume control operation, the screen zoon-inoperation, the screen zoom-out operation, the screen movement operation,the pointer movement operation, the screen setting operation and thesound setting operation.

Details will be described below with reference to FIGS. 6A to 6D.

FIGS. 6A to 6D show a left-right gesture of the user according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6A, as an embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of controlling the sound of the video displaydevice 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the volumecontrol amount as a volume value of +3 if the distance between the headof the user which is the reference object and the hand which is thegesture object is d1. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may increase thevolume of the video display device 100 by the volume value of +3.

Referring to FIG. 6B, as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of controlling the volume of the video displaydevice 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the volumecontrol amount as a volume value of +5 if the distance between the headof the user which is the reference object and the hand which is thegesture object is d2. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may increase thevolume of the video display device 100 by the volume value of +5.

Referring to FIG. 6C as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of controlling the sound of the video displaydevice 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the volumecontrol amount by the volume value of +1 if the distance between thehead of the user which is the reference object and the hand which is thegesture object is d3. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may increase thevolume of the video display device 100 by the volume value of +1.

Referring to FIG. 6D as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of controlling the sound of the video displaydevice 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the volumecontrol amount by the volume value of −3 if the distance between thehead of the user which is the reference object and the hand which is thegesture object is d4. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may decrease thevolume of the video display device 100 by the volume value of 3.

Referring to FIGS. 14A to 14D, details will be described below withregard to the implementation of the control operation according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 14A to 14D show the left-right gesture of the user according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 14A as an embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of clenching the user's hand which is the gestureobject as the control operation of changing the displayed channel of thevideo display device 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognizethe channel movement amount as +3 if the distance between the head ofthe user which is the reference object and the hand which is the gestureobject is d1. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may change the channelthat the video display device 100 displays to the channel after 3channels. For example, the video display device 100 may change aschannel 13 if the channel in display is channel 10.

Referring to FIG. 14B as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of clenching the user's hand which is the gestureobject as the control operation of changing the displayed channel of thevideo display device 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognizethe channel movement amount as +5 if the distance between the head ofuser which is the reference object and the hand which is the gestureobject is d2. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may change the channelthat the video display device 100 displays to the channel after 5channels. For example, the video display device 100 may change tochannel 15 if the channel in display is channel 10.

Referring to FIG. 14C as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of clenching the user's hand which is the gestureobject as the control operation which changes the displayed channel ofthe video display device 100. Further, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the channel movement amount as +1 if the distance between thehead of the user which is the reference object and the hand which is thegesture object is d3. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may change thechannel that the video display device 100 displays to the channel afterone channel. For example, the video display device 100 may change tochannel 11 if the channel in display is channel 10.

Referring to FIG. 14D as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of clenching the user's hand which is the gestureobject as the control operation of changing the displayed channel of thevideo display device 100. Further, the control unit 170 may recognizethe channel movement amount as −3 if the distance between the head ofthe user which is the reference object and the hand which is the gestureobject is d4. Accordingly, the control unit 170 may change the channelthat the video display device 100 to the channel before 3 channels. Forexample, the video display device 100 may change to channel 7 if thechannel in display is channel 10.

Referring to FIGS. 7A to 7C, details will be described below with regardto the implementation of the control operation according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A to 7C show the left-right gesture of the user according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7A as an embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching two hands respectively which are thegesture objects as the control operation of adjusting the size of thescreen of the video display device 100. Further, the control unit 170may recognize one of two hands which are the gesture objects as thereference object and may recognize another hand as the gesture object.The control unit 170 may zoon in the displayed screen two times if thedistance between one hand which is the reference object and another handwhich is the gesture object is d1.

Referring to FIG. 7B as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching two hands respectively which are thegesture objects as the control operation of adjusting the size of thescreen of the video display device 100. Further, the control unit 170may recognize one of two hands which are the gesture objects as thereference object and may recognize another hand as the gesture object.The control unit 170 may zoom in the displayed screen 3 times if thedistance between one hand which is the reference object and another handwhich is the gesture object is d2.

Referring to FIG. 7C as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching two hands respectively which are thegesture objects as the control operation of adjusting the size of thescreen of the video display device 100. Further, the control unit 170may recognize one of two hands which are the gesture objects as thereference object and may recognize another hand as the gesture object.The control unit 170 may reduce the displayed screen 0.8 times if thedistance between one hand which is the reference object and another handwhich is the gesture object is d3.

Referring to FIGS. 8A to 8C as another embodiment, details will bedescribed below that the video display device 100 operates byrecognizing the plurality of the fingers of the user as the referenceobject and the gesture object.

FIGS. 8A to 8C show the finger gesture of the user according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8A as an embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the index finger which is thegesture object and the thumb which is the reference object as thecontrol operation of adjusting the volume of the video display device100. The control unit 170 may recognize the volume adjusting amount as+1 if the distance between the thumb which is the reference object andthe index finger which is the gesture object is d1. Accordingly, thecontrol unit 170 may increase the volume of the video display device 100by the volume value of 1.

Referring to FIG. 8B as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the index finger which is thegesture object and the thumb which is the reference object as thecontrol operation of adjusting the volume of the video display device100. The control unit 170 may recognize the volume adjusting amount bythe volume value of +3 if the distance between the thumb which is thereference object and the index finger which is the gesture object is d2.Accordingly, the control unit 170 may increase the sound of the videodisplay device 100 by the volume value of 3.

Referring to FIG. 8C as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the index finger which is thegesture object and the thumb which is the reference object as thecontrol operation of controlling the sound of the video display device100. The control unit 170 may recognize the volume adjusting amount bythe volume value of −1 if the distance between the index finger which isthe reference object and the thumb which is the gesture object is d3.Accordingly, the control unit 170 may decrease the volume of the videodisplay device 100 by the volume amount of 1.

Referring to FIGS. 9A to 9C, details will be described below with regardto the implementation of the control operation according to anotherembodiment.

FIGS. 9A to 9C show the up-down gesture of the user according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9A as an embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of making one or more of the screen of thevideo display device 100 and the pointer displayed to the screen move.Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the movement amount by themovement value of −2 if the distance between the head of the user whichis the reference object and the hand which is the gesture object is d1.Accordingly, the control unit 170 may move one or more of the screen ofthe video display device 100 and the pointer displayed in the screen tothe downward by the movement amount of 2. For example, the video displaydevice 100 may display the pointer with regard to the fifth channel ifthe pointer is in display with regard to the third channel in the listof the displayed total channel.

Referring to FIG. 9B as another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of moving one or more of the screen of thevideo display device 100 and the pointer displayed in the screen.Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the movement amount by themovement value of +1 if the distance between the head of the user whichis the reference object and the hand which is the gesture object is d2.Accordingly, the control unit 170 may move one or more of the screen ofthe video display device 100 and the pointer displayed in the screen tothe upward by the movement amount of 1. For example, the video displaydevice 100 may display the pointer with regard to the second channel ifthe pointer is in display with regard to third channel in the list ofthe displayed total channel.

Referring to FIG. 9C with another embodiment, the control unit 170 mayrecognize the gesture of stretching the hand which is the gesture objectas the control operation of moving one or more of the screen of thevideo display device 100 and the pointer displayed in the screen.Further, the control unit 170 may recognize the movement amount by themovement value of −4 if the distance between the head of the user whichis the reference object and the hand which is the gesture object is d3.Accordingly, the control unit 170 may move one or more of the screen ofthe video display device 100 and the pointer displayed in the screen tothe downward by the movement amount of 4. For example, the video displaydevice 100 may represent the pointer with regard to the seventh channelif the pointer is in display with regard to the third channel in thelist of the displayed total channel.

Control operation implementation according to the gesture of the user ofthe aforementioned video display device 100 is an example for theexplanation and it may be established in various ways according to theselection of the user or the designer. Accordingly, the video displaydevice 100 may perform the various control operations according to theform or the movement of the gesture and the calculated distance. Forexample, the video display device 100 may perform one or more controloperations including the channel change operation, the volume controloperation, the screen zoom-in operation, the screen zoom-out operation,the screen movement operation, the pointer movement operation, thescreen setting operation, and the volume setting operation.

Further, the video display device 100 may set the control operationcorresponding the gesture of the user according to the selection of theuser or the designer. Accordingly, the control operation of the videodisplay device 100 corresponding to the same gesture may be set invarious ways with regard to the plurality of each users.

According to an embodiment, the above-described method can also beembodied as computer readable codes on a computer readable recordingmedium. The computer readable recording medium is any data storagedevice that can store data which can be thereafter read by a computersystem. Examples of the computer readable recording medium includeread-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), CD-ROMs, magnetictapes, floppy disks, and optical data storage devices, and also includeimplementation in a carrier wave (such as data transmission through theInternet) type.

As can be seen from the foregoing, the video display device inaccordance with the embodiments are not limited to the configuration andmethod of the embodiments described above, but all or some components ofthe embodiments may be configured to be selectively combined such thatvarious modifications of the embodiments can be implemented.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of operating a video display device,comprising: acquiring a video associated with a user of the videodisplay device; recognizing a gesture of the user in the acquired video;recognizing a gesture object and a reference object of the user based onthe recognized gesture; calculating a distance between the recognizedgesture object and the recognized reference object; calculating acontrol amount based on the calculated distance; and performing acontrol operation corresponding to the recognized gesture and thecalculated control amount, wherein the calculating the control amountcomprises: recognizing the calculated control amount as a positivenumber when the gesture object is located in a first direction from thereference object and recognizing the calculated control amount as anegative number when the gesture object is located in the seconddirection from the reference object.
 2. The method according to claim 1,wherein the recognizing the gesture object and the reference objectcomprises recognizing a position of the gesture object and a position ofthe reference object in the acquired video.
 3. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the calculating the distance comprises calculating thedistance between the gesture object and the reference object based onone or more of an area, a size, and a length of each of the gestureobject and the reference object.
 4. The method according to claim 1,wherein the calculating the distance comprises calculating the distancebetween the gesture object and the reference object based on a ratiobetween the gesture object and the reference object.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the gesture object is an objectcorresponding to the gesture of the user.
 6. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the reference object is a reference for calculating thecontrol amount.
 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the gestureobject and the reference object are different objects from each other.8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the recognizing the gestureof the user comprises comparing one or more of a shape and a movement ofthe recognized gesture with one or more of a shape and a movement of apreviously stored gesture.
 9. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe performing the control operation comprises performing one or morecontrol operations including a channel change operation, a volumecontrol operation, a screen zoom-in operation, a screen zoom-outoperation, a screen movement operation, a pointer movement operation, ascreen setting operation, and a volume setting operation.
 10. A videodisplay device, comprising: a video acquisition unit configured toacquire a video associated with a user of the video display device; anda control unit configured to recognize a gesture of the user in theacquired video associated with the user, recognize a gesture object anda reference object of the user based on the recognized gesture,calculate a distance between the recognized gesture object and therecognized reference object, calculate a control amount based on thecalculated distance, and perform a control operation corresponding tothe recognized gesture and the calculated control amount, wherein thecontrol unit is further configured to recognize the calculated controlamount as a positive number when the gesture object is located in afirst direction from the reference object and recognize the calculatedcontrol amount as a negative number when the gesture object is locatedin a second direction from the reference object.
 11. The video displaydevice according to claim 10, wherein the control unit is furtherconfigured to calculate the distance between the gesture object and thereference object based on one or more of an area, a size, and a lengthof each of the gesture object and the reference object.
 12. The videodisplay device according to claim 10, wherein the control unit isfurther configured to calculate the distance between the gesture objectand the reference object based on a ratio between the gesture object andthe reference object.
 13. The video display device according to claim10, wherein the gesture object is an object corresponding to the gestureof the user.
 14. The video display device according to claim 10, whereinthe reference object is an object which is a reference for calculatingthe control amount.
 15. The video display device according to claim 10,wherein the control unit is configured to perform one or more controloperations including a channel change operation, a volume controloperation, a screen zoon-in operation, a screen zoon-out operation, ascreen movement operation, a pointer movement operation, a screensetting operation, and a volume setting operation of a video displaydevice based on a recognized gesture and a calculated control amount.16. The video display device according to claim 10, further comprising astorage unit storing one or more of a shape and a movement of a gesturemapped to the control amount.
 17. The video display device according toclaim 16, wherein the control unit is further configured to recognizethe gesture of the user by comparing one or more of a shape and amovement of the recognized gesture with one or more of a shape and amovement of a previously stored gesture.